Guided Buddhist Meditations: Essential Practices on the Stages of the Path

Description

A new edition of a Buddhist classic, an accessible introduction to the stages of the path (lamrim)--including 14 hours of downloadable audio meditations. For busy practitioners, the lamrim gives a concise and easily graspable picture of the Buddhist path. Best-selling author Thubten Chodron has a unique ability to present these teachings. In this volume, she provides clear explanations of the stages of the path, while an accompanying audio program contains guided meditations on each of the topics covered in the text. The meditation teachings of lamrim, says Buddhist teacher Thubten Chodron, are like ready-made clothes that are easy to wear- they're systematized so that we can wear them right away, so we can learn and practice them in an organized fashion. Lamrim can be translated in various ways- "stages of the path," "steps on the path," or "gradual path." "Gradual path" reminds us that the process of transforming the mind, unlike so many other things in our hurry-up society, is a slow and thoughtful one. These systematic teachings are the subject of this book and downloadable audio meditations. The lamrim presents a step-by-step method to tame the mind, and each person will find meaning and insight according to his or her level of understanding. The first section discusses how to establish a daily practice, how to set up an altar, and how to approach the two kinds of meditation--stabilizing and analytical. The second presents the meditations. The third supplies an overview, instructions for working with distractions, antidotes to mental afflictions, advice for newcomers, and suggestions on how to deepen Dharma practice. The accompanying downloadable audio contains more than fourteen hours of guided meditations, led by Thubten Chodron.

VENERABLE THUBTEN CHODRON has been a Buddhist nun since 1977. She has been a close student of the Dalai Lama, with whom she has coauthored several books. She is abbot of Sravasti Abbey, a Tibetan Buddhist monastery in Newport, Washington, and she teaches regularly throughout the United States, Europe, and Asia.